The Boy Who Never Gave Up by Dr Emmanual Taban

jacaranda FM, Scenic Drive With Rian

In 1994, 16-year-old Emmanuel Taban walked out of war-torn Sudan with nothing and nowhere to go after he had been tortured at the hands of government forces, who falsely accused him of spying for the rebels. When he finally managed to escape, he literally took a wrong turn and, instead of being reunited with his family, ended up in neighbouring Eritrea as a refugee.

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When you're black, intelligence isn't enough

W24, News24

In her new book, Intelligence Isn’t Enough, Carice Anderson guides readers on how to survive and thrive in corporate space, how to take a more strategic approach to their careers. and how to understand themselves and others more deeply.

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How the ANC has chased away investors

Business Day, Tony Leon

Despite the magic of [Nelson] Mandela and the so-called rainbow miracle, 900,000 South Africans left the country from 1990 to 2018. Although this covers all eras from [FW] De Klerk through to [Jacob] Zuma, it gives a flavour of the size of the exodus. And the group with the greatest mobility and the easiest options were SA’s superrich.

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Journey of an adventuring doctor

Herald Live, Zamandulo Malonde

Losing her husband Peter Haw in 1984 also meant that Louwrens lost her ultimate adventure partner. Louwrens, 68, who now lives in Knysna, has practised medicine on seven continents, combining both her passions — adventure and healing. Sometimes with her daughters — one just four years old and the other an infant of five months — in tow, Louwrens dedicated years of her life to this unconventional way of living.

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Book Review | So, For the Record

New Frame, Imraan Buccus

So, For the Record reads more like a spy thriller by the great John le Carré than an academic tome. Author Anton Harber is not just a professor at the University of the Witwatersrand, he was also the editor of the Weekly Mail when it was a courageous anti-apartheid newspaper and the voice of the Left. He brings experience and moral authority to the discussion of what went wrong with the media during the Jacob Zuma years.

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Dream of a Lifetime: Crossing Antarctica

nutreads, Zissy Lewin

As a young child growing up in South Africa, Mike was obsessed with tales of explorers. He dreamed of growing up as an explorer, venturing into lands no man had ever gone before. He grew up to be a world-renowned explorer, and in February 2017 reached one of his wildest childhood dreams. He crossed the Antarctic. Alone.

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Jane’s Delicious A-Z of Herbs

iOL, Duncan Guy

“Eating organic herbs and vegetables from our own gardens will boost our immune systems, helping us ward off illness or not be as sick if we do catch something,” she said, adding that herbs could be grown in the smallest spaces, “even a sunny window sill”.

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One Day In Bethlehem

De Beer Necessities, Diane de Beer

This is another of those books that could be titled #blacklivesmatter and it makes perfect sense that it was awarded the 2020 Recht Malan Prize for non-fiction. As is his nature, Jonny Steinberg perfectly captures this moment in time with his latest illuminating investigative writing.

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Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell

TimesLive, Kate Sidley

Historical fiction is a departure for O'Farrell but she gives us what we've come to expect from her novels - characters and relationships, often families, that are psychologically nuanced and complex, that feel real and touch the heart, in a story that is immersive and finely wrought.

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A Long Petal of the Sea

The Guardian, Hephzibah Anderson

Lanky Victor is in many ways the opposite of his brother, Guillem, a handsome militiaman. When his parents take in one of his father’s best piano students, Roser Bruguera, it’s Guillem that she falls in love with. Yet by the time the war is over, Roser is heavily pregnant and alone, and it will be a slower, infinitely more pragmatic – and more interesting – love that the novel ultimately celebrates.

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Mr. Nobody

The Washington Post, Carol Memmott

“Mr. Nobody” is equally fit for the big screen. The novel’s cinematic opening begins with a half-frozen man floundering on an English beach in winter, his memory gone. The story line draws from a real-life event: In 2005, a man dressed in sopping wet formal wear was found wandering on the Isle of Sheppey, in Kent, England, claiming that he had no idea who he was.

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American Dirt

Vulture, Rebecca Alter

Winfrey also posted a video of her endorsement to the Oprah’s Book Club Twitter account, saying, “I was opened, I was shook up, it woke me up, and I feel that everybody who reads this book is actually going to be immersed in the experience of what it means to be a migrant on the run for freedom.

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The Deep State

The New York Times, Peter Baker

More axes are sure to fall. A senior Pentagon official appears in danger of losing her nomination to a top Defense Department post after questioning the president’s suspension of aid to Ukraine. Likewise, a prosecutor involved in Mr. Stone’s case has lost a nomination to a senior Treasury Department position.

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Your House Will Pay

Herald Scotland, Alastair Mabbott

A Korean-American crime writer from Los Angeles, Steph Cha is well-placed to examine the racial tensions of her home city, and she’s surpassed expectations with Your House Will Pay. Basing her story on a fictionalised version of the shooting of a 15-year-old African-American girl by a Korean convenience store owner in 1991, she probes its long-term effects on the families of victim and perpetrator.

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Watson’s BMW among Bosasa assets to be auctioned off

The Citizen, Daniel Friedman

The auction, including properties, vehicles and equipment, is the final nail in the coffin of a company believed to have received roughly R12 billion from government tenders. Park Village Auctions will be auctioning off the assets of African Global Operations, formerly known as Bosasa, on December 4 and 5. An advertisement has been circulating for the auction, which will see items including late Bosasa CEO Gavin Watson’s metallic blue BMW X5 offered up.

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An interview with Jeremy Daniel

LitNet, Naomi Meyer

I think he is a figure of reconciliation already. What he's achieved, where he came from, how he lives his life is all part of his story. He's not a flashy player, so many people underestimate his impact on the field. He's doing the hard work at the bottom of the ruck, putting in the grind while others get credit. I think any sport that showcases us as a winning nation can contribute to nation-building.

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Inside Gavin Watson’s state capture cult

TimesLive, Adriaan Basson

It’s easy to imagine that state capture began with Jacob Zuma and the Guptas. But you’d be wrong. Born out of the ANC Women’s League 20 years ago, Bosasa has come to be described as the ANC’s “Heart of Darkness”. At its helm, until his untimely death on August 26 this year, was Gavin Watson, a struggle-rugby-player-turned-tenderpreneur.

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A House Divided

media24, Book Extract

It was April 2017, and 150 DA councillors were crammed into a com­mittee room on the spacious mayoral floor of the civic centre. There was a temporary pause in the acrimonious shouting, and the DA's councillors looked shocked, unsure whether to believe this was happening. Usually, disagreements in the caucus were resolved through debate and consensus; sometimes, decisions went to a vote.

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Robey Leibbrandt

Maroela Media

In die vroeë 1940’s is die Suid-Afrikaanse publiek aangegryp deur die uitdagende optrede van die Olimpiese bokser en swaargewigkampioen Robey Leibbrandt. Hy was dodelik gekant teen Suid-Afrika se deelname aan die oorlog. Sy ekstremisme, opvlieënd-heid en onverdraagsaamheid was tipies van ’n politieke fanatikus.

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